[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 18 (Tuesday, February 14, 2006)]
[House]
[Page H245]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   WITNESS TO AFGHANISTAN'S PROGRESS

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take my 
Special Order at this time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, while leading a congressional 
delegation to Afghanistan, I was struck by the progress that the Afghan 
Government is making toward establishing a democracy, as well as with 
the enthusiasm and the determination of the Afghan people to finally 
and deservedly live in a free society.
  The purpose of this trip, which also included stops in Iraq and 
Kuwait, was for Members of Congress to see firsthand the efforts being 
made toward U.S. goals of bringing stability and democracy to these 
nations.
  In Afghanistan, where the prospects for reform once looked bleak, a 
transformation has occurred which has resurrected freedom, established 
legitimate leadership, and reinvigorated the population.
  It is difficult to imagine that a mere 5 years ago the Taliban 
government was thriving in this nation, exporting terrorism and 
promoting archaic extremism. Today media, cultural, business, and 
political leaders are free to meet, to discuss, to demonstrate and 
guide policies which are reforming their nation's economy, opening the 
political process, and liberating society from the fundamentalist laws 
which enslaved their nation.
  This overwhelming progress has been made under leadership of 
President Hamid Karzai. Having met with President Karzai, I am assured 
that he is a capable and determined individual and he is able to 
continue to guide his nation into a transition to a modern democracy. 
To help facilitate this, Karzai and the Afghan Government are seeking 
to implement the Afghan Compact, which is a commitment to achieve 
specific goals relating to security, to the rule of law, to human 
rights, to economic development, to the elimination of narcotics trade 
within 5 years.
  The task ahead remains difficult. It remains lengthy. But with the 
sustained help of the United States and other international donors and 
especially the demonstrated optimism and the resilience of the Afghan 
people, I am confident that the goals of this compact will be realized.
  The progress being made in Afghanistan also has serious implications 
for our own Nation's security. Our congressional delegation conveyed to 
Afghan leaders that Congress remains deeply concerned about the 
mounting bloodshed in this Nation and over the ongoing narcotics trade 
which supplies over 90 percent of global opium and heroin.
  My colleagues and I were also able to meet with high-ranking U.S. 
military officials, including Commanding General John Abizaid, to 
discuss the current military situation on the ground. I left impressed 
with our military's success against the insurgents and confident in our 
decisive victory over it.
  Afghanistan was the first foreign front in our campaign to eradicate 
terrorism, and the success that we have had in eliminating the Taliban 
and establishing a democratic government is monumental and undeniable. 
In this area, however, our job is not complete, and America must not 
yield in our commitment to our troops and to their noble efforts. 
Standing side by side with its Afghan counterparts, our military will 
continue to actively seek out and destroy terror elements and work 
toward establishing complete stability and a transparent rule of law so 
that Afghanistan will never again be a safe haven for terrorists.
  At a time when many are questioning the legitimacy of U.S. efforts 
abroad, Afghanistan serves as the perfect example of why our efforts to 
bring stability, freedom, and security are crucial, just, and 
attainable. Clearly, the new Afghanistan is emerging as one of our 
closest allies in our fight against extremists.
  While meeting with the Speaker of the Afghan Parliament, he and I 
discussed the critical partnership which is developing between our two 
nations. Both nations are committed to furthering our alliance, which 
has already borne much fruit, with the knowledge that neither nation's 
goals will most effectively be realized without the friendship and deep 
cooperation of the other.
  In our meeting, the Speaker expressed his hope that the Afghan people 
will serve as a ``bridge to democracy for other peoples of the 
region.''
  I share the Afghan Speaker's hope, and I am confident that the 
inevitable spread of freedom and democracy will protect and preserve 
the American way of life here at home and make it available to those 
currently oppressed abroad.
  The undeniable progress that continues to be made in Afghanistan 
makes peace, security, and prosperity all the more assured and 
protected--for Americans as well as Afghans.

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